Learning Outcome #13: Continue to develop professionally as reflective practitioners who are committed to an on-going scholarly inquiry
I have heard this rumor that a lot of teachers seek out this profession because it is easy, and one gets the summers off. I am not one of these people, and not one teacher should have that mind set. If I am a true teacher, I am going to continue my learning every chance that I obtain. Learning doesn’t stop in the classroom from the students, but should proceed on to the co-workers, administrators, parents, community, and world that we all live in. The more I learn, the more successful I will be with my students, and that is where my goal begins, and will never end.
I refuse to be one of those teachers who might think they know everything, because I know that I don’t and I am okay with that. My job is to learn from my students, and the world around me to better the education I teach. Then to use what I teach to enrich the lives of my students. As a teacher I am promoting life long literacy as well as life long learners; I am a master learner, and I will go that extra mile to bring success to my students and myself.
Because I was in education club for a majority of my college career, I was able to attend many events. One that stands out the most was during the year 2010-2011 when the entire club took a bus to go see Erin Gruwell, the teacher and founder of the “freedom writers.” I didn’t know about this woman and her story until I saw the movie, which is one of my favorites. Before coming to college and before student teaching I had said after watching this movie every time that I wanted to make this much of a difference in my future students’ lives. This woman is a hero, and someday I want to be. When seeing her speak she discussed the differences between the movie and her real life. She also played videos of the real students she worked with and taught who, most of them, have become teachers of their own classrooms. They founded the Freedom Writers Foundation, which contains blog posts, donations, advice for teachers, and advice for teaching students effectively etc. Erin no longer teaches because she promotes her story to the rest of the world. I remember tears falling down my face after listening to her story because it is real, and more than that, it is possible. She gives all future teachers hope.
I refuse to be one of those teachers who might think they know everything, because I know that I don’t and I am okay with that. My job is to learn from my students, and the world around me to better the education I teach. Then to use what I teach to enrich the lives of my students. As a teacher I am promoting life long literacy as well as life long learners; I am a master learner, and I will go that extra mile to bring success to my students and myself.
Because I was in education club for a majority of my college career, I was able to attend many events. One that stands out the most was during the year 2010-2011 when the entire club took a bus to go see Erin Gruwell, the teacher and founder of the “freedom writers.” I didn’t know about this woman and her story until I saw the movie, which is one of my favorites. Before coming to college and before student teaching I had said after watching this movie every time that I wanted to make this much of a difference in my future students’ lives. This woman is a hero, and someday I want to be. When seeing her speak she discussed the differences between the movie and her real life. She also played videos of the real students she worked with and taught who, most of them, have become teachers of their own classrooms. They founded the Freedom Writers Foundation, which contains blog posts, donations, advice for teachers, and advice for teaching students effectively etc. Erin no longer teaches because she promotes her story to the rest of the world. I remember tears falling down my face after listening to her story because it is real, and more than that, it is possible. She gives all future teachers hope.
"I love enhancing my education"
I became a member of Sigma Tau Delta, the International English Honor Society in 2011, Phi Kappa Phi, the International Honor Society in 2012, and recently was inducted into Kappa Delta Pi, the International Education Honor Society in 2013. Not only is being a member of these societies an accomplishment, but also acquiring the experience of collaborating with others and receiving information to help pursue my career successfully. Because of these societies, I am able to connect with others, become educated through multiple resources on various topics, and use the knowledge that I learn. Because I am Vice President of Sigma Tau Delta, I also was able to practice my leadership and public speaking skills, which I have been using throughout my student teaching and other parts of my education. It has been decided that when KDP goes to Costa Rica for two weeks in December, I will be one of those members attending. We will be working with children and teaching them literacy skills. Teaching is a dream come true that I will continue to master.
For one of the staff development days in the very beginning of my placement at Homer, I was able to get a sneak peak of the eighth grade ELA module based on the Common Core State Standards. During this day we received the novel that would be read, and the entire module with four units completed. We were split up into grade groups, and we went through twelve of the lessons to see how we could teach this material affectively. This is going to be an upcoming strategy through the state. Student teaching at Homer Junior High, I was able to be a part of this experience and experiment. It was my job to take this module and make it my own, and although difficult, it was an experience that I have under my belt, that many have yet to discover.
On March 9, 2013, I was given the opportunity to attend the Writing Matters Conference issued by Seven Valleys Writing Project held in Cortland, NY. Not knowing before I went, but this conference counted as six professional development hours, and it was such an extraordinary experience, I was completely intrigued the entire day.
For one of the staff development days in the very beginning of my placement at Homer, I was able to get a sneak peak of the eighth grade ELA module based on the Common Core State Standards. During this day we received the novel that would be read, and the entire module with four units completed. We were split up into grade groups, and we went through twelve of the lessons to see how we could teach this material affectively. This is going to be an upcoming strategy through the state. Student teaching at Homer Junior High, I was able to be a part of this experience and experiment. It was my job to take this module and make it my own, and although difficult, it was an experience that I have under my belt, that many have yet to discover.
On March 9, 2013, I was given the opportunity to attend the Writing Matters Conference issued by Seven Valleys Writing Project held in Cortland, NY. Not knowing before I went, but this conference counted as six professional development hours, and it was such an extraordinary experience, I was completely intrigued the entire day.
"Professional development builds the mind"
One workshop that I attended was Writing to Learn, Think, and Question presented by Kathryn Cernera. Before getting started she asked us all to finish the sentence: “My teaching is…” on a paper strip. My sentence read: “My teaching is my love. This was a fun way to get everyone who was in that room engaged. I have always been a firm believer in writing for fun, and in this workshop we learned so many different ways to write. The big idea was about writing before and after a discussion can lead to a deeper understanding of content and more thoughtful classroom discussions. We tested it out, and it truly worked: thinking, writing, and then discussing is key to being productive and successful in the classroom.
Another workshop I listened in on was called Better Memoir Through Multiple Viewpoints, given by Sarah Marcham and Jacqueline Franke. The plan was to play around with memoir. As a teacher it is crucial to understand how important it is to allow students to write about their lives giving an authentic reason to write. But the idea in this workshop was to play around with considering a moment in time from multiple perspectives and how it adds dimension to our writing. It takes writing to a new level. I remember that when asked to write, I wrote about a very personal experience, but when asked to change the viewpoint, I wrote in the perspective of the phone causing the writing to still be introspective but through the “phone’s” point of view. This is something that also fits into the CCSS because we are asked to have students read and write from multiple perspectives.
One of the last workshops I attended was titled Clearing Digital Space for Teaching presented by Sarah Hobson, and (at the time) my host teacher at Tully High school, Bill Ralbovsky. What they offered was a work in progress, however it is something that I will undoubtedly be a part of when it is up and running. They have created an online space for teachers to go to and connect with other teachers to enhance their own learning and better their students’ education. This workshop was a space for teachers to give feedback on their project to help develop and enable it, so it will eventually become a time for teachers to discuss professional development of building relationships, cultural environments, instruction, resources, and how to work collaboratively successfully.
Another workshop I listened in on was called Better Memoir Through Multiple Viewpoints, given by Sarah Marcham and Jacqueline Franke. The plan was to play around with memoir. As a teacher it is crucial to understand how important it is to allow students to write about their lives giving an authentic reason to write. But the idea in this workshop was to play around with considering a moment in time from multiple perspectives and how it adds dimension to our writing. It takes writing to a new level. I remember that when asked to write, I wrote about a very personal experience, but when asked to change the viewpoint, I wrote in the perspective of the phone causing the writing to still be introspective but through the “phone’s” point of view. This is something that also fits into the CCSS because we are asked to have students read and write from multiple perspectives.
One of the last workshops I attended was titled Clearing Digital Space for Teaching presented by Sarah Hobson, and (at the time) my host teacher at Tully High school, Bill Ralbovsky. What they offered was a work in progress, however it is something that I will undoubtedly be a part of when it is up and running. They have created an online space for teachers to go to and connect with other teachers to enhance their own learning and better their students’ education. This workshop was a space for teachers to give feedback on their project to help develop and enable it, so it will eventually become a time for teachers to discuss professional development of building relationships, cultural environments, instruction, resources, and how to work collaboratively successfully.
"I will continue my education, to bring success to theirs"
The most recent conference I attended was on April 11, 2013. This workshop was called Preventing Cruelty, Promoting Kindness: 10 Strategies for Creating a Caring Classroom, presented by Dr. Tom Lickona. I decided to go to this due to the title catching my eye me because truly and absolutely kindness is where it all begins. He described his own experiences, and other teachers' experiences of how to create a safe and respectful learning environment where students learn how to build good moral character. His big idea was based on: Habits of the mind, habits of the heart, and habits of behavior. It was a very informative conference, and I know that when I have my own classroom, I will be prepared to create a safe, warm, and welcoming community, student-based classroom.
I was recently offered a grad assistantship at SUNY Oneonta. I will be working with professors, teaching, co-teaching, organizing events, attending conferences, and the list goes on. This is one of my greatest accomplishments, and I hope to pass on the love of teaching that I endure to the undergrad students that I will be mentoring. I will continue my discovery of the world we live in, and continue searching for multiple ways to convey my research to my students. I will participate in Ning conversations, educational conversations on Twitter, facebook, linkedin, and will proceed on with my love of teaching.
I was recently offered a grad assistantship at SUNY Oneonta. I will be working with professors, teaching, co-teaching, organizing events, attending conferences, and the list goes on. This is one of my greatest accomplishments, and I hope to pass on the love of teaching that I endure to the undergrad students that I will be mentoring. I will continue my discovery of the world we live in, and continue searching for multiple ways to convey my research to my students. I will participate in Ning conversations, educational conversations on Twitter, facebook, linkedin, and will proceed on with my love of teaching.